The Art of Poetic Healing and Underworld-y Stuff
by PersnicKty2018
Summary: A son of Apollo and the son of Hades. A story left for the imagination. Well, this is Fanfiction... If you were unhappy with the way Riordan ended things with Nico and Will, this is the one-shot for you! May add cover image later.


**I**** know, whaat? It's not Thursday and this is not my story. But I just finished The Blood of Olympus and I was really mad at Riordan for not finishing the little scene with Nico and Will.**

**Now, I have nothing against homosexuality, but I am normally a little uncomfortable writing it so you'll just have to bear with me. But I just love Nico and I was really mad. I wanted an ending, he didn't give me one, so ta-da! I'll write my own, because author skills.**

**So, I just got this idea. This will the be start of the Happily Never Told fics. This will be a series of my favorite characters in books and/or movies that I feel should have gotten more story, or I just wanted more about that character(s) and sadly never got it.**

**Please let me know what you think, just a one-shot that it is a possibility that I will add on to later continue on later.**

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><p>Recap<p>

_Nico studied his face- his sea green eyes, his grin, his ruffled black hair. Somehow Percy Jackson seemed like a regular guy now, not a mythical figure. Not someone to idolize or crush on._

_"So, since we're going to be spending at least a year seeing each other at camp, I think I should clear some air."_

_Percy's smile wavered. "What do you mean?"_

_"For a long time," Nico said, "I had a crush on you. I just wanted to let you know."_

_Percy looked at Annabeth, as if to check that he'd heard correctly. Then back at Nico. "You-"_

_"Yeah," Nico said. "You're a great person. But I'm over that. I'm happy for you guys."_

_"You...so you mean-"_

_"Right."_

_Annabeth's gray eyes started to sparkle. She gave Nico a sideways smile._

_"Wait," Percy said. "So you mean-"_

_"Right," Nico said again. "But it's cool. We're cool. I mean, I see now...you're cute, but you're not my type."_

_"I'm not your type... Wait. So-"_

_"See you around, Percy," Nico said. "Annabeth."_

_She raised her hand for a high five._

_Nico obliged. Then he walked back across the green, where Will Solace was waiting._

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><p>Somehow, he felt like he had lifted a weight off of his shoulders. And it felt great. Okay, so maybe Percy was still trying to grasp the thought that this whole time it hadn't been Annabeth that he'd had a crush on, and maybe if Nico tried anything "Underworld-y" in the next few months he might become part of the shadows himself, but...<p>

Oh well. Just take one step at a time. So Nico did just that.

One.

He had gotten the Athena Parthenos back to Camp Half-Blood, with Reyna's and a few flying Pegasus help, accepted.

Two.

His father was proud of him. That meant the world to him. Or, the Underworld...ugh. Being a son of Hades was a lot more complicated than people gave credit for, and people gave a _l__ot _of credit for belonging in Cabin 13 as it was.

Three.

Percy knew now. So what, he had a crush on him. So what, he had acted like a complete idiot, but, well some books can be judged by their covers. It was a good thing he had Annabeth, Nico thought, for once finding that he meant it wholeheartedly. So what, Percy might never look at him the same again. So what, so what, so what.

Four, five, six...

Just take one step at a time.

Seven...

"Hey, di Angelo!"

Nico looked up from counting the steps he was taking and stared up into the eyes of Will Solace.

Blue.

Blue, not green.

And somehow, he found that he was okay with that.

Nico forced down a blush he hadn't even noticed and walked on, his hands shoved in his pockets. His Stygian Iron sword swung at his waist, bumping his thigh every stride. It was comforting to have it, but he knew that he didn't need it. Still, it was a nice reminder of who he was, and that he could be proud to be himself.

_"So where were you?"_

Nico grudgingly dealt with the smile that tugged at the corner of his mouth as he got closer to Will.

_"You can't help out a friend?...You don't think I could stand to see a friendly face?"_

Will was a strange boy, of course. His Apollo-good looks definitely didn't pass unnoticed by a certain child of the Underworld, but Nico tried not to notice or care.

"Solace," Nico nodded his head once as a greeting.

Will grinned.

"So, how about that infirmary?"

Nico could have done a lot of things at that moment. He could have asked Will about why he seemed so upset at the thought of Nico leaving, or why it bothered him that Nico believed nobody cared about him, or he could have just shadow traveled and become a ghost. Maybe he would have saved some time and worries for lots of people.

Instead, he settled for one of his glares, as dangerous and deadly as his Stygian Iron blade. It seemed to hum with approval.

"Don't be so down, Death Boy."

"I do believe I said don't call me Death Boy, Hot Head," Nico shot back. It was meant to be insulting, but apparently, Nico had forgotten that he was speaking to a son of the very god himself, Apollo, who was as vain as he was the Sun God. So, naturally, Will took this as a compliment.

He ran a hand through his shaggy blonde hair (something that Nico most certainly did _not _find appealing in the slightest bit) and grinned. He himself looked a little weary, and he must have, spending most of his time healing the injured. And apparently worrying about Nico...

Will clapped him on the back and said, "Let's go get you that rest. Doctor's orders, remember?"

"Don't touch me," Nico protested, but he didn't exactly do anything to move Will's hand away. Why did the skeleton butterflies feel almost...nice? With Percy, it made his stomach twist and he could have vomited had his stomach been full enough to muster anything more than spit. Now, it almost made him feel, Hades forbid, _happy._

Wait, wait, wait...did he just compare this feeling to the _crush_ he had on _Percy?_

Oh no, he most certainly did _not _like Will like that. He was being a good friend. Plus, he didn't have that many close friends. And believe it or not, he liked having Reyna call him a friend, even consider him family. He couldn't ruin it just because Will found out he was gay.

Nico couldn't help it any more than he could help being a son of Hades, but he could help what his friends thought of him (well, to some extent). And right now, he would _not _let pesky little things like feelings get in the way of his happiness.

Happiness, what a strange and foreign word for a child of the Underworld. Even Hades himself admitted that his children didn't often end up to be happy, or at the very least, accepted. But he had wished for Nico to be an exception. He wondered if Hades knew about...his situation. He probably didn't. Otherwise, he wouldn't have deemed himself proud of Nico. But how could he not? He was a _god _for Zeus's sake! Some things Nico just wouldn't understand. And just like some deaths, the reasons he may never know.

Nico felt like punching a wall at the moment, but he was swept with a wave of nausea. He was suddenly just so tired that a cot in the infirmary sounded like the best thing in the world. Forget raising the dead, Nico wanted sleep and he wanted it _now_.

He stumbled, much to his embarrassment, but Will was there to stabilize him. Nico stiffened when he realized that Will's hand was still guiding him through camp. He shouldered out of it, grumbling about how he could take care of himself.

Will just smiled, but he respected his wishes. Generally, Nico's reasons were because he hated physical contact. Which was true, but some things were exceptions. He smiled when he thought about Reyna, who had hugged him despite the fact that they were supposed to be mortal enemies, and Jason, who considered him part of the family of the Big Seven.

Nico would miss Hazel a lot, and eventually, Percy and Annabeth, but they would come back. Maybe even visit for him. And Reyna certainly wouldn't come to Camp Half-Blood without at least stopping and saying hello. Of that he was certain. And he now had an unexpected but not necessarily unpleasant friendship with this son of Apollo.

No, he wouldn't- couldn't ruin this.

"Hey Nico, you're not looking too good," Will noted, jumping ahead to face him.

"Speak for yourself," Nico slurred. Why was he so tired? He wanted to just enjoyed the moment but no.

"Take it easy, I'm trying to help."

"I don't want your help." Nico supposed that it was just an empty threat, as Will gently placed his hand on Nico's shoulder. Nico shuddered but ignored it.

Then, that stupid Hot Head smirked. _Smirked_ of all things. (And again, this was something that Nico did _not _find appealing in any way, shape, or form.)

"Well, too bad then," he said and shoved Nico onward.

Nico grumbled something in Greek that translated more or less to...well, something that a typical fourteen-year-old boy would say.

But Nico was not a typical fourteen-year-old boy. Not by Mortal's standards, not by demigod standards, not by anyone's standards. Nor would he ever be. Nico used to care so much more about those kinds of things but now they didn't bother him so much. Maybe it was because he didn't have to compare himself to so many other great demigods. There were people out there who were happy- proud, even- to call him their friend, and that was good enough for him.

"Are you okay?" Will asked, strangely serious.

Nico wasn't sure about what to do with the look and tone he was giving him, so he played it off with a rare smile. For the second time that week, his muscles stretched in the unfamiliar gesture.

"Never better, Hot Head," he said, grinning without malice or evil intention. It was just a pure smile. Will looked a bit taken back, and why shouldn't he? Nico never smiled. It was rare for him to be truly amused.

Nico figured he was probably making him uncomfortable, so he cleared his throat and iced his gaze over again.

"But I am a little tired. Three days fast asleep sounds really good."

"You haven't been doing any Underworld-y stuff lately, have you?" Will raised his eyebrow in concern. Nico almost chuckled. Almost.

"No Underworld-y stuff," he promised. It was such a ridiculous term and he had nearly sworn never to use it, but it was just something he ended up using anyways. Like when a particular ghost tempted you with riches, power, or fame. So this didn't end in any way bad, but Nico was used to ghosts. People weren't really his strong suit.

"Good. We can't have you disappearing on us yet, Death Boy," Will smirked. If Nico had the energy, he would have punched him.

"Whatever. Just get me to the infirmary and I _might _consider not letting the ground swallow you."

Will's face once again turned serious. "No more Underworld magic for you, Nico."

"I know, sheesh," Nico grumbled, tripping over a tree root. He cursed at nothing in particular.

"Alright, come on. It's just beyond here."

Will led Nico through a maze of cabins and trees, in which Nico almost walked through one but he stopped himself, whether for Nico's sake or Will's he wasn't quite sure.

"Three days rest," Will wagged his finger at Nico as he directed him inside.

Nico glared at him, praying to his father that the glare would hide the spark of...something, Nico didn't have a name yet. Perhaps the skeletal butterfly feeling. 'Skeletons' were familiar, maybe even as far as comforting, so that would do. So the skeletal butterflies that fluttered in his stomach at the Cabin Seven's Counselor's concern.

Concern. For Nico. The son of Hades.

How that was possible, well, Nico was till trying to figure that out himself.

Nico was then taken to a nice enough looking cot out of range of the injured and the handful of sick, with a soft blanket and a fresh pillow.

"I hope it'll be okay."

"Thanks," Nico said, blinking at the unexpected sincerity he held in his voice.

"Hey man, it's the least we can do," Will smiled.

"The least you can do? What did I do?" Nico raised his own eyebrow, crossing his arms and making his blade swing across his hip.

Will eyed him. "Are you kidding? Camp Half-Blood owes you more than you might think. Rest up, you'll be fine."

_I could have slept in my own cabin, _but the thought already drifted past his mind as soon as he slid under the covers.

Yes, sleep was nice.

Nico mumbled something, but it was lost even to his own ears.

"Hmm?" Will asked.

Nico sat on the bed, blinking away sleep, with his legs covered by the blanket. The familiar feeling of dog-tired drowsiness came to him, as only when he was sitting down did he realize just how tired he was.

"Nothin'," he responded.

Will smirked. "Sleep well, Death Boy."

With a playful wink, Will turned and walked away.

Nico glared at his retreating form, thinking about sending a wave of scary Underworld shadows after him.

Yes, because he certainly wasn't thinking about the son of Apollo's charming looks or flawless wink that he did not find appealing in any way- oh, who was he kidding, Will could have pulled off the whole godly look with ease and Nico wasn't exactly complaining.

But as Nico drifted off to sleep, he pushed all of those thoughts away. He didn't want them now. Sure, he would have to sort through them later, but for now, all he was to do was sleep. And that sounded like a pretty good thing, if you asked him. He didn't want to ruin this. He may have thought Will was sort-of-kind-of-maybe perfect but he liked him as a friend.

He couldn't ruin this.

It would probably become a problem later on (it was Nico, though. With his luck it would destroy all hope of his tiny glimpse at happiness.), but all he had to do in that moment was take everything one step at a time.

And for a boy who had been to Tartarus and back, who had nearly turned himself into a ghost transporting a magical ancient Greek statue, who was destined to be unhappy and alone his entire life, he was completely fine with that.

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><p><strong>Awww... Alright, I know I said that I wanted a better ending and a lot of you would probably say that they should have kissed, but just because I wanted more doesn't mean I wanted them to kiss. They're both still pretty new to actually being "friends" so I thought that this was cute and satisfying.<strong>

**Let me know what you think! And if I finish my other story, would any of you be interested in turning this into a multichapter fic?**

**R&R, ****PersnicKety2018**


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